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Ten Best Cars of 1979

This page lists the top ten (11 by tie) cars of model year 1979 by reliability-and-durability grade point average (Reliability-Durability GPA or more concisely, R-D GPA).

1979's Top 11 Classic Cars

These 11 car classics are listed below in descending order of Reliability-Durability GPA.

The Toyota Corolla, with a Reliability-Durability GPA of 3.85

The 1979 Toyota Corolla came in either a 2-door, 2-door-hatchback, 4-door-sedan, or 4-door-wagon edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 97-cubic-inch (1.6-Liter), 75-horsepower engine, a 3-speed automatic, 4-speed or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 13 gallons. The 4-door sedan has an overall length of 165 inches and an overall width of 62 inches. The Corolla's tire size is 165R13.

The Toyota Celica, with a R-D GPA of 3.85

The 1979 Toyota Celica came in either a 2-door or 2-door-hatchback edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 134-cubic-inch (2.2-Liter), 90-horsepower engine, a 3-speed automatic or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 16.1 gallons. The 2-door has an overall length of 174 inches and an overall width of 65 inches.

The Toyota Corona, with a R-D GPA of 3.77

The 1979 Toyota Corona came in either a 4-door-sedan, 4-door-hatchback, or 4-door-wagon edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 134-cubic-inch (2.2-Liter), 90-horsepower engine, a 3-speed automatic or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 16.1 gallons. The 4-door sedan has an overall length of 175 inches and an overall width of 65 inches.

The Toyota Pickup Truck 2-wheel-drive, with a R-D GPA of 3.75

The Mazda RX-7, with a R-D GPA of 3.71

The Mazda GLC rear-wheel-drive , with a R-D GPA of 3.69

The 1979 Mazda GLC came in either a 2-door-hatchback, 4-door-hatchback, or 4-door-wagen edition and with an inline 4-cylinder, 86-cubic-inch (1.4-Liter), 65-horsepower engine, a 3-speed automatic or 4-speed or 5-speed manual transmission, and a fuel capacity of 10.6 gallons. The 4-door hatchback has an overall length of 154 inches and an overall width of 64 inches.

The Mercedes-Benz 240D Inline 4, with a R-D GPA of 3.67

The Mercedes-Benz 300D Inline 5, with a R-D GPA of 3.60

The diesel-powered Mercedes-Benz 300D Inline 5 came in a 2-door-sedan or 4-door-sedan edition and with an inline 5-cylinder, 183-cubic-inch (3.0-Liter), 77-horsepower engine, a 4-speed automatic transmission, an overall length of 191 inches, an overall width of 70 inches, and a fuel capacity of 21 gallons.

The Mazda 626, with a R-D GPA of 3.59

The Mercedes-Benz Turbo Diesel Inline 5, with a R-D GPA of 3.57

The Toyota Cressida, with a R-D GPA of 3.57

Manufacturers of the Top 10

Toyota Motor Corporation again accounted for 5 of the most reliable and durable cars of 1979, an increase from 4 in 1975, 1976 and 1977. As in 1978, the Toyota Corolla and the Toyota Celica tied for first place, each with a Reliability-Durability GPA of 3.85.

Daimler-Benz AG and Mazda Motor Corporation accounted for the remaining 6 of the best cars of 1979.

Japanese-built cars accounted for 8 of 1979's best cars; German-built cars accounted for the remaining 3. The Top 4 were all made by Toyota.

Note that in 1979 none of the Detroit 3 had a car among the Top 11 and, consequently, there was no sizable gap between any two of the 11 best.

The following chart gives each car maker's percent share of the Top 11 of 1979.

Milestone in Reliability and Durability

1979 was the first year in which all of the Top 10 (here Top 11) had a Reliability-Durability Grade of A (R-D GPA of 3.50 or higher).

Computations

To compute the reliability-durability grade point average of the MY 1979 cars, Consumer Reports' reliability ratings for the age ranges 4-to-5 years and 5-to-6 years are used.

CR's ratings are converted to numerical values following the standard academic pattern: a grade point of 4.0 (an A) is accorded a rating of Much Better Than Average, a 3.0 (a B) is accorded a rating of Better Than Average, a 2.0 (a C) is accorded a rating of Average, a 1.0 (a D) is accorded a rating of Below Average, and a 0 (an F) is accorded a rating of Much Below Average.

Then, for each age range, the grade point of CR's overall reliability rating is weighted 2/3 and the average of the grade points of the category ratings is weighted 1/3.

This volume of AutoOnInfo.net’s car guide series offers consumers and researchers an historical summary of the reliability and durability of car and truck brands and examines how these brands have fared in their U.S. market shares. It uses 6-year-old model entries in Consumer Reports’ Used Car to Avoid – also termed Vehicles to Avoid and Worst Cars, Year by Year – and CR’s reliability charts to ascribe quality grades to automobile brands for model-year groups 1985 to 1989, 1990 to 1994, 1995 to 1999, 2000 to 2004, 2005 to 2006, and 1985 to 2006. In addition to ascribing quality grades to each brand, it provides a chart that plots the number of the brand’s 6-year-old model entries in CR’s vehicles to avoid. To examine the effect that a brand’s reliability and durability has had on sales, two or more charts depicting the brand’s U.S. market shares for calendar years 1985 to 2009 are given. These grades and charts and the author’s comments impart an historical perspective that sheds light on the present condition of surviving vehicle lines and their future prospects, individual and institutional shortcomings, and what effect these may have on the U.S.

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